1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a mobile terminal and a method for controlling the operation of the mobile terminal, and more particularly to a mobile terminal, which provides a function to preview a 3D stereoscopic image, and a method for controlling the operation of the mobile terminal.
2. Description of the Related Art
A mobile terminal is a portable device having a function to perform voice and video communication, a function to receive and output information, or a function to store data. As the functionality of the mobile terminal has been diversified, a mobile terminal having various complicated functions such as a function to capture still or moving images (i.e., photographs or videos), a function to reproduce music or video files, a game function, a function to receive broadcasts, and a wireless Internet function has been implemented as an all-in-one multimedia player.
Various novel attempts have been made in terms of hardware or software to achieve more complicated functions of the mobile terminal implemented as a multimedia player. One example is provision of a user interface environment allowing the user to easily and conveniently find and select a desired function. As the mobile terminal is now considered a personal belonging expressing the user's personality, there has been demand for various interface designs such as a double-sided Liquid Crystal Display (LCD), which can be viewed from both sides, a touch screen, or a high-resolution camera.
Recently, a technology for generating a three-dimensional (3D) stereoscopic image by combining a number of images captured using a camera through an image processing procedure has also been introduced. If this technology is applied to a mobile terminal, a 3D stereoscopic image can be generated using a camera provided on the mobile terminal.
Thus, when a mobile terminal provides a 3D capture mode for generating a 3D stereoscopic image, there is a need to provide the mobile terminal with a function to preview a 3D stereoscopic image that may be generated using a currently captured image to allow the user to intuitively determine a portion of the subject, which needs to be captured to generate a 3D stereoscopic image, a capture direction, and the like.